


I'd Like It To Be You

by cubeofbutter



Category: Ancient Greek Religion & Lore
Genre: A little angst, Alternate Universe - College/University, Aphrodite is actually nice, Artemis is a lesbian, Everyone Is Gay, F/M, Fluff, Greek Mythology - Freeform, Inspired by Hades and Persephone (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Zeus is still an asshole, hades is trans, idk how to tag, we stan hades
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-18
Updated: 2020-03-22
Packaged: 2021-02-28 19:46:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,797
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23192647
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cubeofbutter/pseuds/cubeofbutter
Summary: Persephone is smart, a self-described fat girl, and ready to get out from her Mother's overprotective wing and figure out what to do with her life. Hades is an introverted artist who's just trying to survive college.Witness their romance, lives, hardships and friends through college.Sorry lol I suck at summaries. It's Hades and Persephone at college being all cute and shit.
Relationships: Aphrodite/Hephaestus, Artemis/Athena (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Hades/Persephone (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore)
Comments: 3
Kudos: 25





	1. Moving In

**Author's Note:**

> Oh my god! I'm finally done! And this is happening!
> 
> Ok. I'm gonna try and upload every couple of days. Key word: try. But the one pro of the corona virus is that I have a lot of time to write while I'm self-isolating. Stay safe y'all.
> 
> I wanted to clarify a couple things: This is NOT based off any other work relating to greek mythology. It's just me taking the greek gods and stuffing them into a college setting.
> 
> Also, the he only characters that are related are Artemis and Apollo. So though Zeus IS Persephone's dad, Hades isn't Zeus's brother or Persephone's uncle (Blech.) 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy reading this as much as I did writing it. Comments are much appreciated.
> 
> P.S: Sorry if this sucks. I'm not the best at intros.
> 
> P.P.S: I rewrote the first three chapters because they were literal garbage.

Persephone leaned her head against the car window, feeling the cool glass against her hair. Trees whizzed passed in a blur of reds, oranges and yellows: explosions of color against the dark green and brown landscape. The butterflies in her stomach fluttered and she smiled.

“Excited?”

Persephone picked up her head and looked over at her mother, Demeter, a tall woman in her forties. The question was supposed to be kind, but she heard the underlying tension. Her mom’s face was a road map of disapproval that Persephone silently traced.

“Hell yeah.”

Her mother pursed her lips in quiet displeasure. Anger simmered inside Persephone. It had taken weeks of begging just to be allowed to apply to Olympus College, and even longer to convince her Mom to let her go. By now, she had hoped that her Mom’s disapproval would have lessened. No such luck. 

She tried to remind herself that this was the last day she would see her Mother for weeks. And besides, she was only doing this out of love. What mother wanted their child over a thousand miles away in an unfamiliar state? 

The thoughts only made her feel guilty and she grabbed her phone out of the backpack at her feet to distract herself. A selfie of Hestia followed by a couple texts. An email that didn’t look too important. Nothing from Zeus.

She sighed, fired off a quick text to Hestia, and stuffed her phone back into her backpack. Typical. 

Her Mom, perfectly attune to when Persephone was pissed at her Dad, glanced over. “Your father didn’t text?” 

It had always been that way, ever since the divorce. Your father. Not Zeus or Dad, just your father. Another degree of separation from her ex-husband. 

“Nope.” 

“Sorry, Sweet pea.” 

She shrugged. Persephone had long ago become used to her Dad’s spotty role in her life. Still, a text would have been nice. 

“Are we almost there?” 

“A couple more minutes.” 

Persephone took a deep breath, trying to exhale all of the feelings of anxiety and hurt. Today was basically the first day of college. She was not going to let her over-protective Mother or her forgetful Dad ruin it.

“We’re here!” 

She straightened and watched as the school came further into view. The sign outside read: OLYMPUS COLLEGE and then below, SINCE 1946, all in fancy gold lettering. Just seeing it sent the butterflies in her stomach into flight. 

Olmpus’s campus was large, with around thirteen or fourteen buildings. All were classic, ivy covered brick buildings ripped straight from the pages of a Donna Tartt novel. Woods surrounded the college and the air was filled with the faint scent of pine and earth. 

“It’s...cozy.”

Persephone snickered as her Mother eyed the dorm room.

“It’s a college dorm room, Mom. What’d you expect?”

The room wasn’t terrible in Persephone’s opinion. It was narrow, but pretty long and it made the most of the limited space. A bunk bed was pushed against one wall and a single bed against the other. Next to the door was a closet, and a small window stood at the back wall and overlooked the campus. 

Before she came, Persephone had already looked up pictures of the dorm rooms and planned out what her space would look at. (She was excited, ok?) She’d been saving to buy everything she wanted to decorate, and she was determined that it would look perfect. Her mother tried to help, but Persephone was secretly hoping that once the other parents arrived, she would go off and leave her to unpack alone.

As if on queue, a knock sounded from the propped open door. 

The first thing Persephone thought when she saw her new roommate was “Damn, she’s gorgeous.” She was tall, with warm, dark brown skin and long braids tied into a loose ponytail. Confidence radiated from her, and she managed to make her simple jeans and white blouse a fashion statement. 

When the girl saw Persephone, her face broke into a grin. “You must be my roommate! I’m Aphrodite.” 

“Persephone. It’s, uh, nice to meet you.” 

“Same.”

Persephone almost stuck out her hand to shake, but thankfully Aphrodite’s Mom’s bustled in before she could and introduced themselves. And like she’d hoped, the three women went into the hallway to chat.

An awkward silence ensued. Persephone felt the urge to jump out the window. Please say something please say something please say-

“So, what classes are you taking?”

It turned out that Aphrodite was a surprisingly easy person to talk to. Talkative and funny, she managed to make a stranger feel like they’d known her for forever. Soon, they were both trading jokes back and forth and teasing each other mercilessly. At first, they didn’t even notice when a short girl wearing a faded Doctor Who t-shirt stuck her head in.

“Hello?” 

“Oh, hey! You’re the last person. I’m Aphrodite.”

“Athena. Nice to meet you.”

“You too. That’s Persephone.” 

She gave a wave and was about to say something when Athena’s Mom beat her to it. 

“Picture time!” 

Athena flushed.“Mamá! Podemos tomar uno más tarde.” 

“Quiero una foto con tus aquimimos también. Picture.” 

“Ooh, good idea,” Persephone’s mother said from the hall. 

The three girls were herded together and stood arm in arm while their parents flashed pictures. After they managed to kick all the parents out so the three could finish unpacking. Persephone found that she was becoming fast friends with her roommates. She also found out that they all shared a love of John Mulaney, Marvel movies and lima beans. 

They were putting the final touches on their rooms when Athena pulled out a rainbow flag and hung it above her bed. Persephone couldn't help but stare.  
She’d never been particularly open about her bisexuality. Or even comfortable with it. She still hadn’t come out to her mother, almost two years after she realized it. There were queer kids in her rural town, but she’d never been brave enough to talk to them. Persephone worried they would look at her and see a fraud. She’d only dated one girl and had a boyfriend for most of high school. And when she came out to him, he told her that it didn’t matter, since she was dating him. Besides, bisexuality wasn’t even real.

That memory, him smiling and holding her hand, dismissing who she was and telling her he loved her in the same breath, kept her quiet. Persephone turned back to her desk and finished organizing the drawer. 

The rest of the morning was a flurry of meetings, information and new people, and by the end her head was left reeling. Not to mention the butterflies from earlier that morning had turned into giant birds, flapping around in her stomach. Persephone didn’t think she was going to be one of those kids getting super emotional at the thought of their parents leaving, but here she was. 

Her Mom smiled and tucked a stray lock of hair behind Persephone’s ear. “I’m going to miss you.” 

“I’m gonna miss you too.” 

Persephone groaned when she saw the tears brimming in her Mom’s eyes.

“Mom!” 

“Sorry, sorry.” 

“You promised you wouldn’t cry.” 

“I know. I’m sorry. I can’t help it. My baby’s going to college.” 

Persephone smiled and pulled into another hug. As she wrapped her arms around her Mom, she heard her voice in her ear. “Don’t do drugs.” 

“Mom!” 

“Or drink.” 

“I won’t.” 

“Or join a cult.” 

“What?” 

“Just making sure you know it’s off the table.” 

Persephone rolled her eyes inwardly at her mother and kissed her on the cheek.

“I love you.” 

“I love you too. So much. And sweetpea,” she hesitated, her expression a mixture of sadness and hope. “I’m proud of you. And I hope you’ll be happy here.” 

Persephone fought back the tears and threw her arms around her Mom. She tried to imprint the memory into her brain. How her mother's arms felt pressed around her, how she smelled, the way her thinning blonde hair, now almost completely gray fluttered in the gentle breeze.

As she walked back to the blue rental truck, Persephone fought back the tears threatening to to run down her cheeks. When at last the car was out of sight, she let out a long, slow breath, letting the sunshine warm her. Then she turned and walked towards the dorm.


	2. Meet The Twins

The silence in the dorm room was only punctuated by the sound of typing, and the occasional turning of pages. Athena was reading Rubyfruit Jungle and absentmindedly biting her nails. The rest of her nails, short and uneven, showed it to be a habit.

Persephone was supposed to be doing her homework, but her mind kept drifting. After a few minutes of staring at the blinking cursive, she decided to take a break. It was getting dark out, but she’d still have plenty of time.

“I’m bored.”

Athena glanced over at Persephone with a smirk. 

“You have homework.”

“Shut up. Also, don’t you?”

Athena was about to answer when the door burst open, revealing Aphrodite and two people Persephone didn’t recognize. One was a tall guy, asian descent, with black hair, tied up into a bun, a Beatles t-shirt and what looked like a ukulele strapped across his chest. The other was a scowling girl with purple hair and wore a jean jacket covered with pins that said things like FUCK THE PATRIARCHY and NOBODY KNOWS I’M A LESBIAN. She was also clutching a backpack that appeared to be moving. 

“Are either of you allergic to dogs?!” Aphrodite whisper-yelled frantically. 

“What?”

“Are. You. Allergic. To. Dogs.”

Athena stared at the disheveled Aphrodite. “...No?”

“Persephone?”

“No. But what-”

“Awesome.” The girl with the dyed hair set down a backpack that she had been holding and zipped it open. A tiny pink nose poked out, and then a small dog emerged, sniffing the air.

“Oh. My. God.” Athena stared at the animal in horror. 

“Look, we just found it outside-”

“And you brought it here?”

“Well, my roommate is allergic-” The guy said. The girl then added, “And mines a total hard-ass. She’ll report me to the RA before you can blink.” 

“We just need to keep it here until we can figure out who its owner is. Please?” Aphrodite begged, giving Athena and Persephone puppy-dog eyes.

Persephone grinned at Athena, who looked like she wanted to strangle everyone in the room.

“Fine. But you're talking care of it. And if the RA finds out, I’m blaming you.”

“Deal.” Aphrodite grinned. “Oh, by the way, these are Artemis and Apollo.”

“‘Sup.” The tall guy raised his hand in greeting. The girl cracked a tiny smile. 

“I’m Persephone. That’s Athena.” 

Athena nodded, still frowning. Persephone rolled her eyes affectionately and sat cross legged on the floor.

“C’mere baby,” She cooed. “Where’d you find...him? Her?”

“Him. We were walking back and saw him running through the parking lot.” Apollo said. 

She nodded and stuck out her hand for the dog to sniff. She guessed that it was some kind of pug mix. It approached her hand and gave it an experimental lick. She reached out to try and pet it, but it backtracked quickly and padded over to Artemis. 

“He’s got a collar on. Check if there’s a phone number.”

Artemis squatted, scratched the dogs chin, and twisted the blue collar around to read the silver tag. Pausing, she smirked and looked up at the group. 

“His name is Gus.”

“What?”

Artemis shrugged, typed the number into her phone and put it to her ear. 

“She’s answering...Hey! My name’s Artemis….”

After a couple minutes, she hung up and grimaced. “Ok, the owners are coming. But she said it’s gonna be an hour or so.”

“An hour?” Aphrodite asked in disbelief. “Why? Where does she live?”

“I don’t know, dude. That’s just what she said.”

Everyone fell silent and looked at the dog, who was now lying on its back while Artemis scratched it’s stomach.

“What the hell are we gonna do with it?”

“Keep it here obviously.” Seeing Athena’s expression, Persephone added, “It’s only for an hour. Besides, these guys will stay here and look after Gus while I finish my freaking homework.”

Aphrodite, Apollo and Artemis had the decency to look guilty. They all settled down on the floor and started playing with the dog. Gus seemed happy to have the attention, having warmed up to his temporary owners.

“So, how do you guys know each other? Also, you. Why the fuck do you have a ukulele?" Athena asked, from her bed.

"You never know when a situation might arise where you need a ukulele. And I have English with Aphrodite. and me and Artemis are twins."

“Unfortunately.” Artemis grumbled, shooting her brother a glare. He stuck his tongue out at her and Aphrodite rolled her eyes. “Oh, quit it, you two.”

Apollo made a face, and then glanced over at the rainbow flag on the wall. His face broke into a grin.

“Oh hell yes. Who’s the other gay?”

Athena raised her hand, grinning. “Me. You’re gay?”

“Bi. Wait. Is there anyone in the room who isn’t queer?”

Everyone immediately glanced over at Persephone, who turned bright red.

“Don’t look at me! I’m, uh...I’m bisexual.”

“Fuck yeah!”

Apollo reached over to high five her and even Artemis nodded in approval. Persephone turned to Aphrodite. “You’re queer?”

She nodded, but didn’t elaborate and Persephone got the hint. 

“So. Who wants to play cards against humanity?”

By the end, her stomach hurt from laughing. They eventually managed to get Gus back to his owner, who was very appreciative. She even tried to offer them some money. (Artemis tried to take it. Aphrodite elbowed her.) She ended up really liking the twins. Apollo was loud and brazen, and Artemis, though serious, was actually pretty funny. They left sometime after midnight, after exchanging numbers with everyone. 

As Persephone drifted off to sleep, she felt a warmth inside her chest and smiled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y'all. Second chapter!!! I'm so pumped. 
> 
> I honestly have no idea how long this is gonna be. I've sort of plotted??? But I keep getting ideas and wanting to make it longer sooooooo.
> 
> I'm pretty sure Hades is gonna be introduced in the next chapter though. His edgy highness is coming!
> 
> Thank you for reading honestly. The fact that anyone has even seen this is mind-blowing. ❤️


	3. Coffee

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Third chapter!
> 
> For those who have already read this, I just wanted to let you know I edited it, (More like rewrote it) So I suggest you read this chapter again.
> 
> For those who haven't, there was definitely NOT a terrible third chapter and this was definitely how it always was.
> 
> Also, this chapter is quite a bit longer than the other ones, which I think will be the norm going forward. 
> 
> Thank you so much for reading!!!

Two weeks into her freshman year of college, Persephone stepped into the on-campus café, the smell of coffee and cinnamon hitting her immediately. She checked her watch and noted that her class started in half an hour. Plenty of time to get a drink and relax for a bit.

She ordered a black coffee and scanned the small space for a table, prickling in annoyance when she saw that they were all occupied. Persephone contemplated just leaving, but then saw a table tucked into the back corner. Someone was sitting there, but there was still plenty of space, so she headed over.

“Can I sit here?”

The boy sitting there looked up from his laptop, startled.

“Um, yeah. Sure.”

“Thanks.”

She sat down and pulled out her computer, giving the guy across from her a quick once-over. The first thought that came to her mind was: asshole. 

He wore black, ripped jeans, a black, band t-shirt and a black leather jacket. Silver earrings studded his ears, which were nearly covered by his messy dark hair. Basically the stereotypical “Bad boy.” 

Persephone rolled her eyes internally. She had met guys that looked like him before, and had learned to associate the look with pricks. He probably thinks he’s the hot shit, she thought. Or some kind of edgy sex god. Dick.

They worked in silence for a couple minutes, until she heard a curse and looked up to see her coffee spilling all over the table.

She groaned and grabbed her laptop, putting it on the chair. 

“Fuck, I am so sorry.”

“It’s fine.” Persephone snapped and went to grab some paper towels from the bathroom.

He hovered over her as she mopped up the brown liquid. “I can help if you, uh, want.” 

“I don’t really care.” She was being a bit harsh, but to be fair, he had spilled her coffee. And she was extremely stressed. After throwing out the dirty paper towels, Persephone sat back down on her seat and opened her laptop. 

“I really am super sorry, I was just reaching for my drink and I wasn’t paying attention and my arm knocked yours and-”

Persephone looked up to see the guy's guilty, almost panicked expression and softened. 

“It’s ok. Really. Sorry I snapped.”

“No, no, it’s fine. Do you want me to get you another drink? It’s like, the least I can do.”

She hesitated, and then saw his hopeful expression.

“That would be great. Thank you. It was just a medium black coffee.”

He made a face and she snorted.

“Not a fan?”

“It’s a little bitter for me.”

“Wimp.” She smiled to let him know she was joking and he relaxed.

“Or maybe, you have no taste buds.”

“Oh yeah? And what do you drink that’s so much better?”

“Hot chocolate.”

Maybe it was the way he said it, deadpanned, with only a hint of mirth. Or maybe it was the fact that he was over six feet and dressed like he resurrected punk, yet drank hot chocolate like a six year old. Whatever it was, it made her burst out laughing.

His totally confused expression only made her laugh harder. By the end she was almost crying, all the while he stared at her, bewildered. 

“What?”

Persephone wiped her eyes, still chuckling. “It’s just that you look like that,” She gestured to him and his black leather glory. “And you drink hot chocolate.”

“It’s a good drink!”

“If you’re ten.”

“Plenty of older people drink hot chocolate.”

“Sure,” She said, drawing it out so he couldn’t miss the sarcasm. He huffed, making her chuckle. 

“Well, you look like some kind of fairy, or whatever, and you drink black coffee like some sort of serial killer!”

He had a point. Today, she wore a green skirt, boots, a cream-colored sweater and wore her light, brown hair in a half up, half down hairstyle. Most people who saw her probably thought she drank pumpkin spice lattes or tea. It ticked Persephone off a little, but it was always kind of funny to see people’s faces when she ordered coffee and drank it plain.

She raised her eyebrows and grinned, having completely given up on trying to get anything done. 

“Fairy, huh?”

The guy flushed. “You know what I meant.”

Persephone laughed, and then saw the clock behind the boy's head.

“Oh, shit, I'm gonna be late!”

She grabbed her things and rushed out of the coffee shop. It wasn’t until after her class, when she realized she hadn’t even gotten his name, did she feel a flash of disappointment. 

The next day, Persephone was in the dining hall, scanning it for anyone she knew. Eventually she spotted Athena and Apollo. They were sitting at a table with two guys, one of whom she didn’t know, but looked nice enough. His hair was a sandy blonde, covered by a blue floppy hat and he wore a satchel crossed over his chest. And then, sitting right next to him, was the guy from the coffee shop.

Much to her surprise, she was kind of happy seeing him there and took the seat next to him. 

“Hey guys.”

“Hey! Persephone, meet Hermes,” Apollo gestured to the blonde boy, who gave a little wave. “And that’s Hades. Guys, this is Persephone.”

He smiled at her and she noticed he had a dimple in his right cheek.

“Ok, so back to what I was saying,” Athena said and jumped into a rant about some complex physics thing that Persephone didn’t totally understand.

“What are we talking about?” 

She looked up to see Aphrodite and Artemis. “Science. I think.”

Aphrodite nodded sagely and sat down next to Apollo. Artemis took the seat next to Athena. They all turned to listen to Athena. 

Persephone discovered very quickly just how smart Athena was. Just looking at her course list made her head hurt. But the incredible thing about Athena was her ability to simplify it. No matter how complex the subject, she managed to make it interesting and understandable for everyone. It was a trait that made Persephone want to throw herself in front of a train for her.

“How long do you think she can go?” Whispered Apollo, who watched the passionate Athena with a mix of amazement and amusement.

“Hours, probably.”

She didn’t, though Persephone probably wouldn’t have minded, and the conversation turned to other, less scientific things. Everyone complained about classes, Apollo complained about his roommate, Poseidon, and she felt grateful that she was friends with her roommates.

She ended up zoning off, and snapped back to reality with a head shake. The conversation had evolved into a conversation about a T.V show that Persephone hadn’t seen. Mentally shrugging, she turned back to her lasagna, until she saw Hades out of the corner of her eye.

He looked a little uncomfortable. Like he wanted to join the conversation, but didn’t quite know how. Persephone felt a surge of sympathy.

“You still owe me a coffee.”

Seeing her teasing grin, he smiled. “You’re the one who ran off before I could give it to you.”

“I had to get to class.”

“Well, if you remind me, I will get you a coffee.”

“How long is that promise good for?”

He raised his eyebrows, grinning. “How long?”

“Yeah. Like, can I save it until a really crucial moment, and then make you get me a coffee?”

“Sure, Persephone. Because you’re definitely not going to forget this in two weeks.”

She smacked his arm lightly. “How dare you. My memory is flawless.”

“I’m sure.”

Persephone laughed. 

“Hey, do you listen to Welcome to Night Vale?”

“Yeah. How’d you guess?”

Hades pointed to the pin on her backpack and she flushed.

“Oh. Well. I knew that. But yeah, I do. It’s great.”

Hades' face lit up. “I love it. It’s probably my favorite. Do you listen to a lot of fiction podcasts?”

“Not really. Welcome to Night Vale is really the only story podcast I listen to. I’m more of a true crime person.”

He shook his head, laughing. “I swear, it’s always the super peppy girls who turn out to have a true crime obsession.”

Persephone grinned. “Yep. People are always a little shocked when I drop a fact about Ted Bundy.”

“I can never listen to that kind of stuff. Makes me too paranoid. After reading about the Zodiac Killer, I couldn’t sleep for a week.”

By the end of the lunch, Persephone had come to a couple conclusions. 1. She could probably dial it back on the judgment. 2. Big, intimidating, "bad boy" Hades was a complete and total dork, and 3. The cafeteria lasagna was actually not terrible. Or maybe she had just never had good lasagna. Both were equally possible.


End file.
